Microdramas are Minting New Six-Figure Careers: 'Faster You Can Get in, the Better'
SCOOP: A Luigi Mangione drama drops next; the genre's top exec and star on how writers, actors, agents can tap into a (non-union) $5B Gold Rush
I write about the business of creators. I covered why YouTubers and podcasters are quitting and reported on creators’ revenue streams and jobs available in digital content for Hollywood talent. Send me tips, memes and ideas at natalie@theankler.com.
Hello and happy Monday. I’m coming to you a couple of days early with a special dispatch from the front lines of a burgeoning industry that is spawning a new ecosystem of creators.
I teamed up with my Ankler Media colleague Elaine Low of Series Business — where she covers the TV industry from L.A. — to dig into the booming world of microdramas, which has opened doors to fame and fortune for many creatives even as they bypass the traditional Hollywood career path. Sound familiar?
I’ll be back Wednesday with my regularly scheduled column but wanted to give you Like & Subscribe readers access to this column that we published earlier today for paid subscribers to The Ankler.
Sometimes known as vertical dramas or mini-dramas (a consensus genre label is sure to emerge soon), these series are filmed vertically and typically have dozens of episodes — or chapters — lasting no longer than 60-90 seconds each. This format, wildly popular in China and elsewhere in Asia, where mobile screens dominate entertainment consumption even more than in the U.S., first started grabbing American audiences about three years ago via apps like ReelShort, with content easily reposted on YouTube or TikTok.
On the surface, microdramas are easy to dismiss as cheesy junk food: The acting can be broad, the stories over-index on billionaires, vampires and werewolves and the plot twists are sharp — all the better to keep you swiping to the next installment. These projects hire non-union actors and crew, and more than a few times the writing has been derisively accused of being AI-generated.
But microdramas are suddenly booming, and like YouTube, TikTok and other social media phenoms that came before, this emerging market is snatching up viewers who might otherwise be tuning in to Netflix or HBO. It also reminds me a lot of the lucrative business of webcomics, which have become a new IP pipeline for Hollywood. Elaine spoke with the CEO of ReelShort, Joey Jia, who told her from the company’s Culver City offices that he’s tripled his full-time workforce over the last year to more than 1,000 employees. ReelShort, not even three years old, brings in more than $1 billion in revenue annually, Jia said (yes, billion with a B), from in-app purchases and advertising combined.
Amid a desperately barren job market for performers and Hollywood crews, this is a space that presents opportunity. I had a chat with Kasey Esser, a non-union actor who went from making $500 a day in 2023 to $30,000 to $40,000 a month (!) this year as a leading man in these soapy, telenovela-style shows. (Paid subscribers can see his work below.)
Microdramas may share DNA with Lifetime or Hallmark films and the oft-disparaged (yet tremendously lucrative) romance publishing industry, but the major players are also looking to venture beyond those genres, including adventure and fantasy.
ReelShort shared with us exclusively that it is premiering a new microdrama, The Adjuster, a fictionalized version of the story of Luigi Mangione, the man accused of murdering UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson. The vertical dramatization adds romantic tragedy to the mix: “After his wife dies due to losing health coverage, Matteo Leone, a broken man, takes justice into his own hands by killing the CEO of an insurance company,” the synopsis reads, in part. The series, sure to be provocative and perhaps draw new attention to ReelShort, will be released on June 14. (That’s a day after the premiere of Luigi the Musical in San Francisco, for everyone keeping track.)
Buckle in and bone up, because the early success of microdramas offers lessons for Hollywood and creators alike about how to draw audiences with scripted stories — and entice them to pay up.
In today’s column, let’s look at:
The economics of microdrama apps — and how three dominant players are capturing the lion’s share of a booming market
Where traditional agents may or may not fit into this business
What to know about becoming a vertical drama scribe — and how much you will work and make if you can master the cliffhanger
How ReelShort and others rebuilt story structures for mobile users
How revenue is collected through a “coin” economy
How actor Esser racked up 42 roles and a six-figure income
The huge ad opportunity: How microdrama apps can own global mobile-first audiences
Why Esser says there’s just a 6–12 month window left to break in
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